Flinging ladles of molten steel, blacksmiths keep ‘fireworks’ tradition alive in China
- For the past 500 years, performers in a remote village have been creating Lunar New Year light shows by tossing liquid metal against a cold brick wall
Blacksmith Wang De flings a ladle of molten steel against a cold brick wall, sparking a spectacle of white-hot light in the night sky and keeping alive the flame of a centuries-old Lunar New Year tradition.
Fireworks were invented in China and have been a mainstay of Lunar New Year celebrations, but the remote village of Nuanquan in northern Hebei province has perfected an alternative kind of light show for the past 500 years.
For the performance, known as the Da Shuhua – or “beating the flower tree” – scraps of metal are melted at scorching temperatures and poured into a bucket, where performers like Wang create mesmerising spectacles of light by tossing ladles of the liquid against the wall.
The molten metal – heated to temperatures of up to 1,600 degrees Celsius (2,900 Fahrenheit) – creates spectacular effects that fill Wang with pride.
“When you see it, it’ll affect you profoundly,” said the 55-year-old blacksmith, wearing a sheepskin jacket and protective glasses.